3 Weeks
by SilenceByDay
Summary: When Jeff the Killer is assigned to kill 17 year-old Celestine Fletcher, he thinks of it as a simple task. But what he doesn't suspect is there's more to this killing that meets the eye...
1. Chapter 1

**3 Weeks**

Start of Week 1

Chapter 1

"Your next victim," Slenderman said, and pushed a piece of paper towards me. I reluctantly looked up from my bowl of Lucky Charms to see the picture of my next target. My heart stopped cold. It was a girl. Long wavy brown hair, ocean-blue eyes full of energy and life. Her smile... Her smile looked so innocent... No. I cannot let this girl get in the way of my killing streak. It's just one silly girl, right? How hard could it be to kill a self-absorbed 17 year old?

"You want me..." I paused to look at Slendy, then back at the picture, "to kill her?" I asked. The smile on my face told that I knew I could take her down easily. It was no challenge whatsoever. "No," Slendy said as he leaned forward. If he had eyes, they would be squinting at me in a sarcastic glare. "I want you to hug her and love her and tuck her in at night." Ben sauntered into the kitchen and shot me a quizzical look. He didn't dare to say anything.

"Yes, I want you to kill her!" Slenderman screamed, pushing down on the table in such aggravation that his black tentacles sprouted from his raged ridges of his back. "Why else would I be giving you her name, address, and a picture of her?" He snarled at me. I thought carefully before responding. "You want me to start seeing people?" I asked. Ben stifled a laugh as he reached for a can of pop. Slendy brought his skeletal hand to his lack-of-a-face in one swift motion. I laughed. "Why do you want me to kill her? You know I don't kill without a reason." Slenderman and I would've had a stare-down if it wasn't for the insignificant fact that he didn't have any eyes. The only thing that broke the silence was Ben's can of pop snapping to life, the carbonated drink fizzing with caffeine, basked in sugar. "Ever since..." Slendy took a noticeable pause, "Masky left, things have been quiet around here. Too quiet. We need to stir things up, get you back in the paper. Killing a teenage girl will be just the thing to get you back on the A-list." "I never knew there was an A-list, or a B-list, or a C-list..." I rambled on, until Slendy shot his hand at my mouth to silence my insane mumbling. "You get the idea." Slenderman mumbled darkly. I nodded.

He took his hand off and held up three rather, well, slender fingers. "Three weeks, Jeff. Otherwise you might find yourself in the poor girl's place. I'm giving you this amount of time to be creative with her death. Surprise me." I rolled my eyes, snatched up the photo, and then scaled the stairs. I slammed the door to my room shut and tacked her picture onto my wooden bureau, around the rims of the mirror. I threw myself onto the bed, her name ringing in my head. For the first time, I acknowledged her name. "Celestine Fletcher..." I whispered to myself.

"That's a French name, you know." Ben voice piped out of nowhere. I nearly jumped in surprise. He sat down next to me on the worn out old bed. "Celestine is, at least." He remarked. An enormous noise rattled the house; it's source coming from downstairs. It sounded like pots and pans meeting flesh in one undesirable meeting. "I'M SICK OF THIS!" A male voice screamed from within the kitchen. A calm mumble responded. "NO!" The voice screeched again, and the sickening sound filled the air once more. Ben eyed me nervously. "I think that's Jack." He said, his voice riddled with the slightest amount of concern. "No kidding." I grimly mumbled back.

The noise commenced for another minute. Ben and I sat silently, aware of the harm being inflicted on both opponents. Finally, the slam of a door could be heard, and I trickled slowly downstairs to see the damage. I glanced reluctantly into the living room. Tables and furniture were tipped over in odd positions. Nearly everything wooden was splintered. The wall had quite a few holes in it. The once plush relaxing chair had the majority of its stuffing pulled out. The only thing had had been spared was the TV.

I dared to tiptoe into the kitchen. Pots, pans, plates, and bowls were strewn everywhere. Blood left an obscene and permanent mark on most of the cabinet doors. But in the middle of all the havoc rose the much feared Slenderman. Entering the room had made my head ring with white noise, but as I got closer to Slendy, the noise intensified. It resonated through every fiber of being, consuming me whole. His black tentacles were out once more, and black blood was pouring out from his deathly pale face.

He was making himself busy by reorganizing the silverware, but his anger was brewing just as much as it did in the actual fight. The static inside my head became so painful and dominant that my vision started to blur. I saw a splash of green, a hint of purple... "Oh, hello, Jeff." Slenderman greeted, facing me. His voice was eerily calm. The noise immediately cut to a stop, and my sudden-death headache came to a close. "Jack and I brawled a bit, as you can see..." Slendy motioned to the room and to his forehead, which was spilling out more ink-like blood by the second.

"What did Jack want?" I questioned, my voice even. Slenderman sighed, despite the fact that it is impossible to sigh without a mouth. His hand rested underneath his chin. "He wants us to stop killing people." I smirked. "That'll never happen. As long as we are around, people will die whether they like it or not." Slendy turned to me. "That's the right attitude." He said, his voice full of pride. "Where's Jack now?" I asked. Slenderman gestured his hand in a circle. "He's out in the woods doing God-knows-what. Probably taking his anger out on some unsuspecting trees." I tugged on my shoes and walked towards the door. "I'm gonna go out and look for him before he snares every squirrel in the whole freaking forest." I announced. Slendy nodded. "Okay. Try to get him back before dawn, I don't want anyone out too much during the day. The sun's setting right about now. You can hunt for the maniac all night, for all that I care. Just don't stay out for too long. If Jack is lost, and we are unable to pin-point him, it's his own fault." "Bye." I said, and closed the door gently behind me.

...

The crisp, cool air of winter seemed to settle into my body as soon as I stepped out of the house. I huffed out a breath, and pulled up the hood of my blood-stained white hoodie. I trudged aimlessly along a lone snow-capped path, my head pointing down at my feet. I watched and listened at how each step left a somewhat satisfying crunch of snow and ice behind. I glanced up at the skeletal, bare tress high above me. They towered over me with an aura of majesty, knowing how superior they were in height. But they also emitted a sense of...loss. The swish of an axe and timber of a fellow brother. Pollution and forest fires. People settling into their own native land, claiming it, not knowing that the land already had occupants. Every scampering little animal that had once inhabited their protective homes ran away. They had seen it all. They were the survivors of time. The wind whistled through their branches, telling me the sad story of their existence. Before I could even comprehend what was so elusive about these lifeless trees, I was enchanted by their song. I listened with the upmost eagerness. I felt a...puzzling...change within me. It was as if someone took the messy and morbid puzzle pieces of my life and rearranged them in a new pattern, the new pattern resembling their own. I could relate. I could relate...

A sharp tap on my shoulder interrupted my soulful chant and dream of the trees. I looked up hastily to see who had dared to interrupt my depressing trance. Much to my surprise, it was Jack, the very person I was sent out to find. His black void eyes sent a cold chill down my spine. "Are you lost?" He asked. "No," I replied, "Slendy actually sent me out to find you." He nodded his head "Ah...I see." "Why did you run?" I muttered. He tilted his head to the trees and stared at them. I looked at his face. His blue mask covered most of it...but just for a second...I thought I had seen a clear profile. His head snapped towards me the instant I saw thought I saw his face. "I honestly don't know. I'm such a coward." He sighed, then crouched in the snow. I squatted next to him. "You know I don't do well with authority." He said, and turned his head up to the trees again. "Ever since Masky had left...things just haven't been the same. Slenderman expects too much from us now. It is as if he wants us to fill in the missing hole of Masky, to trying to pretend he's still with us." He turned to face me. "Do you agree?" He questioned. I shrugged. "Ol' Slendy has been a little harsh on all of us lately. I think he's just rattled by the fact that Masky is gone. He and Masky were best friends, ya know? They both had similar experiences of loss and hurt and desire. They both knew what it was like. That's why they got us all together in the first place." I said carefully.

When Jack didn't respond, I continued. "And it hasn't just had an effect on Slendy. Ben tries to hide it, but he's really hurt as well. They were pretty close. But hiding things is what we do best, and Ben is acing it." I gave a halfhearted chuckle. Jack didn't respond, he was just staring at the trees. "Uh...Jack?" I said and poked him lightly. He turned to me. "Oh...uh...I'm sorry..." He faced the trees again. "It's just...these trees...they seem to talk and sing. They were telling their story to me." His eyebrows went funny and crooked, a sign that he was mildly embarrassed. "Heh, sounds crazy, doesn't it?" He looked down. I smiled and stood up, motioning Jack to follow me. He stood up and we started to walk side by side. "No, I don't think it sounds crazy. Not the slightest bit at all."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Every fiber of my room seemed to greet me as I walked through the door. My light blue walls, my blankets, and even my long-forgotten collection of stuffed animals. I looked at myself in the mirror that was positioned on my dresser. My chocolate-auburn hair was a bit tussled from the wear and tear of the school day. Some wisps of hair had managed to work their way out of the loose bun I had hastily thrown my hair into frantically this morning. I snatched my bottle of eye drops and proceeded to fish my eye for the contact that made my brown eye blue. I got it out and trickled a few drops of the liquid onto my eye. I was so used to eye drops that I didn't even feel the chill of the little liquid capacity. My mother saw my different colored eyes as a "unique trait" of my body. I actually liked them a lot, but I didn't express the need for them at school. Ever since Cody asked me to do his science project on my eyes, they had remained a cold, solid blue. Cody and I have known each other since we were babies, but that threw a huge block in our relationship. If my own best friend noticed, then I was in deep trouble. I cried and moaned all night that day, and gradually my mother agreed to get me contacts.

I stared at myself in the mirror. Not in vanity, but in curiosity. My round face shape, and my jawline stood out the most. I have been told several times that I am a very fortunate girl to be graced with these qualities. My thin figure, and my wavy hair...what would made me more desirable? Would I be told I was pretty without my tumbled waves? If I wasn't tall? Why am I immediately more glamorous? I am nothing more than a mere nerdy nobody... I would've stayed there for a while until I heard a sharp rap on the front door. It was probably Cody. There was another knock on the door. It sounded frantic. I ran down the stairs, and screamed "Yeah, I'm coming!"

I threw open the red door, expecting Cody. But to my surprise, it wasn't him. In his place was a boy, maybe my age. He had jet-black hair and a white hoodie. His eyes were dark, almost soulless; quite the anomaly. The boy had a very lanky and skinny figure, nearly too skinny for comfort. His hand was frozen mid-knock, and his mouth was in a taut line. The stranger blankly stared at me.

"Um...can I help you?" I asked after a long awkward pause. He scanned me up and down, as if he was trained to observe people. "Are you Celestine?" He spoke. His voice was an unexplainably, impossible, mixture of gruffness and tenderness. I nodded. "Okay." He spoke, and then turned to walk away from our porch. "Wait!" I commanded. He paused and slowly turned in my direction. "What?" He asked, sounding a bit annoyed. "Why did you need to know my name?" I questioned. He stared at me once more, that emotionless glance...it sent chills down my spine. "Personal reasons." He said, his voice monotonous. "What-" I began to ask, but he dashed off, faster than humanly possible.

"Who was that?" My mom said, appearing behind me. "I don't know." I replied. "Hmph." My mother shrugged and walked away. I scampered up the stairs to my room. I slammed the door behind me, and there, sitting on my bed, was Cody. "Hi!" He said and flashed me a toothy smile. I nearly fainted. "What the cabbage, Cody?!" I shrieked. He stood up to face me. "Your mom let me through the back door, you were talking to some guy," he said, "I thought you knew." Just then, the high pitch scream of my mother's voice filled the house. "I LET CODY IN, CELEST!" "Thanks for the heads up, Mom!" I said back. Cody stifled a laugh. I sat down on the bed and he sat down next to me and put his arm around my shoulder. Not in a romantic way. Not at all. He's more of the...protective older brother I never had. "I don't like that guy, something's wrong with him." He grunted in displeasure. I laughed. "Why? 'Cuz some weirdo is messing around with your girl?" He smiled and lightly punched my shoulder. "Shut up..." Cody said. "He just doesn't seem right. He asked you for your name and left. Seems suspicious to you, doesn't it?"

I nodded. "I honestly don't know what to make of it." I shook my head. He squeezed my shoulder. "I don't want some creep to hurt you. You know that, right?" I nodded. "But I'm perfectly capable of defending myself, you know that." His eyebrows knitted. "But that doesn't mean you won't get hurt." I smiled. "Remember, I have that pole under my bed in the case of some creep breaking into my room." He laughed. "I remember you showing me that in fourth grade. You were so proud of owning that pole." I smiled.

"So, how's prom going for you?" Cody shrugged. "Don't have a date yet. Every other guy has his eyes on Selene. Everyone's saying she going with Zach." "Same here," I responded, "I don't have a date yet. I doubt any guy is gonna ask me anytime soon. I'll just be the awkward loner in the corner, doing the awkward shuffle. Just like in seventh grade." He looked at me and smiled, his green eyes twinkling. "That makes two of us." We sat there for a moment. All of a sudden, his phone buzzed. He reached for it in his hoodie pocket and tapped a few times on the screen. "It's Emma. She wants to know if I have a date." My eyebrow lifted in confusion. "Why would she-" "I don't know." Cody abruptly replied. He texted her back and she immediately responded. His eyes widened. "She wants to know if I would like to go with her to the prom." He shook his head in disbelief. "How does she even know your number?" I asked. "I don't know." We paused for a minute and stared at the screen. "What should I say?" He asked me. "Your call, dude." I said. He bit his bottom lip. "I kinda want to...but then again I don't..." "Why is that?" "I wanted to ask you to the prom."

My heart froze. "...why?" He sighed and faced me. "This is our last year at high school. After this, college, and then life. It's a very slim chance that we'll be going to the same college...and I want to be with you as much as I can." He smiled goofily. "It sounds cheesy, but I'll miss ya, Celest." "Don't be stupid." I remarked and pushed his chest, "we'll still talk and see each other. It's not like I'm going to Siberia. You should go to prom with a cute girl, like Emma." "Stupid is what I am, Celest. Now, Celestine Marie Fletcher, will you go to the prom with me?" I smiled. "Sure." His face lit up. "Great! I'll reject Emma and she'll be flooded with tears the whole week." I laughed. "You're cruel, but that girl does need to get a hold of herself." "See, you agree with me!" He smiled and texted Emma back. His phone beeped before he sent the message. His face immediately darkened. "I gotta pick up my Dad." Cody grumbled. He stood up and ruffled my hair. "Bye," He said and waved his hand goodbye. I waited for the slam of the front door before I collapsed onto my bed, proceeding to ponder the situation for an hour before I eventually fell asleep.

...

"I would like to introduce a new student to our class. It's quite unfortunate that we won't be able to have you here for long, but I hope you find yourself comfortable, Jack." Mr. Errow announced to the class. I glanced up from my notebook that I was doodling in to see who the new kid was. I was shocked to the core. It was the same guy who visited my house. He looked quite comfortable standing up here in front of all 21 of us. His hands were in his hoodie pockets and he was staring at the class nonchalantly. "It's a big school," Mr. Errow continued, "I think you may need someone to help you out. Someone's who been here since freshman year." He scanned the room then settled his eyes on me. I gulped in fear. "Miss Celestine, would you show Jack around?"

As much as I desperately wanted to say no, Mr. Errow's eyes of steel forced me into a fatal agreement. There was something not right with this kid... Something eerie and creepy... I could just feel it. "Sure." I said. Mr. Errow smiled. "And you can situate yourself next to Celestine for now. Miss Fletcher, can you get Jack up to speed with what we're studying?" "Y-y-yeah..." I stuttered. Before I knew it, Jack had plopped himself in the empty seat next to me, along with his supplies, and was looking at me. Up close he was much stranger. His skin was so pale, as if he had never spent a day in the sun in all of his life. His hair was obviously damaged, and his face was impossibly without any blemishes, so perfect that it would leave any teenage girl screaming in rage.

"What are we studying?" He asked, without any humane emotion. I fumbled through my papers. "Oh, we're just doing..." I rambled on about the most recent math lesson. He nodded. "We did the majority of that at my old school, but I never quite got it." The whole class was silent as I showed Jack what to do. Mr. Errow once again smiled in satisfaction. "Thank you, Miss Celestine," he cleared his throat, "I can excuse you two for this class so that you can show Jack around." I nodded and walked out the door, with Jack close behind. We were alone in the hallway. "This high school has three floors. The majority of our classes are on the second floor. Chemistry and math are down here. History, PE, English, Art, Literature, and Health are up on the second floor. I assume you aren't doing Calculus, but in case if you are, it's on this floor." He nodded. "I'll show you to the cafeteria and all the classes." "Thank you, Celestine. I appreciate someone taking the time and consideration to do something kind for someone they obviously despise."

I froze. He cocked his head and looked at me. "It's pretty noticeable that you aren't exactly...thrilled to show me around the school." We continued to walk in silence, as I had nothing to reply with. I showed him all the rooms and the cafeteria. "That's pretty much it, your complete tour of Evergreen Lakes High School." He nodded. We were walking back to our home room when I decided to spring the question on him. "Why were you at my house yesterday?" I asked. He stopped walking abruptly and faced me.

"Principal Dewrty told me that I live fairly close to where you live and I could go to you if I needed any help." He took a step further, leaving barely enough room to be comfortable for people who had just met. "I can, right?" The bell rang and people poured out of the classrooms like water going down a stream after a storm. Cody saw Jack and I in the sea of all the people and gave me a questioning look. I snapped my head away from him and started to walk straight forward. Jack had to jog to keep up with me. We didn't say a word to each other the entire time. I turned a sharp right and nearly rammed into someone's locker, but Jack had somehow nudged me away just enough that I wouldn't get smacked in the shoulder with it. I was in awe because he was chasing after me the whole time. He put his arm around my shoulder, barely touching me, and guided us down the hall. People of all grades shot us stares and smirks. The bell rang, and the chaos of the halls slowly trickled away as the crowd began to separate and go into their next rooms. Once the noise had finally died out, we were left in the hall outside of our homeroom. "Thanks." I mumbled and pushed the door open. Sitting there was the class of freshmen. I snatched my stuff off of my desk and darted towards my next class, Chemistry; Jack closely behind. I threw open the door, and the familiar mix of seniors made me relax a little. I saw Cody, and sat down at my assigned lab table that I thankfully shared with him. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, our teacher made him sit with another person and had Jack sit by me. Jack smiled and said, "Well, I guess we're seat buddies!" I nearly face-desked right then and there. This was going to be a long day.


End file.
